New research has found high rates of sleep apnea in women, despite the condition usually being regarded as a disorder predominantly of males. The study, published online (16 August 2012) ahead of print in the European Respiratory Journal, also suggested that women with hypertension and/or obesity were more likely to experience sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is a condition in which there are frequent pauses in breathing during sleep. The incidence of the condition increases with age and it is considered more prevalent in men than in women... (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)

Conclusion  Although a clear causal relationship of OSA and dyslipidemia is yet to be demonstrated, there is increasing evidence that chronic intermittent hypoxia, a major component of OSA, is independently associated and possibly the root cause of the dyslipidemia via the generation of stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase-1 and reactive oxygen species, peroxidation of lipids, and sympathetic system dysfunction. The aim of this review is to highlight the relationship between OSA and dyslipidemia in the development of atherosclerosis and present the pathophysiologic mechanisms linking its association to clinical disease. Issues relating to epidemiology, confounding factors, significant gaps in research and future directions are also discussed. Content Type Journal ArticleC...

Related Articles

OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to compare the clinical characteristics, prophylaxis, treatment, and outcomes of venous thromboembolism in patients with and without previously diagnosed chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

METHODS: We analyzed the population-based Worcester Venous Thromboembolism Study of 2488 consecutive patients with validated venous thromboembolism to compare clinical characteristics, prophylaxis, treatment, and outcomes in patients with and without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

RESULTS: Of 2488 patients with venous thromboembolism, 484 (19.5%) had a history of clinical chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and 2004 (80.5%) did not. Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were older (mean age 68 vs 63 years) and had a higher frequency of heart failure (35.5% vs 12.9%) and immobility (53.5% vs 43.3%) than patients without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (all P<.0001). Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were more likely to die in hospital (6.8% vs 4%, P=.01) and within 30 days of venous thromboembolism diagnosis (12.6% vs 6.5%, P<.0001). Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease demonstrated increased mortality despite a higher frequency of venous thromboembolism prophylaxis. Immobility doubled the risk of in-hospital death (adjusted odds ratio, 2.21; 95% confidence interval, 1.35-3.62) and death within 30 days of venous thromboembolism diagnosis (adjusted odds ratio, 2.04; 95% confidence interval, 1.43-2.91).

CONCLUSION: Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease have an increased risk of dying during hospitalization and within 30 days of venous thromboembolism diagnosis. Immobility in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is an ominous risk factor for adverse outcomes.

Related Articles

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: The airway tree is a primary conductive structure, and airways' morphologic characteristics, or variations thereof, may have an impact on airflow, thereby affecting pulmonary function. The objective of this study was to investigate the correlation between airway tree architecture, as depicted on computed tomography, and pulmonary function.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 548 chest computed tomographic examinations acquired on different patients at full inspiration were included in this study. The patients were enrolled in a study of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (Specialized Center for Clinically Oriented Research) and underwent pulmonary function testing in addition to computed tomographic examinations. A fully automated airway tree segmentation algorithm was used to extract the three-dimensional airway tree from each examination. Using a skeletonization algorithm, airway tree volume-normalized architectural measures, including total airway length, branch count, and trachea length, were computed. Correlations between airway tree measurements with pulmonary function testing parameters and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease severity in terms of the Global Initiative for Obstructive Lung Disease classification were computed using Spearman's rank correlations.

RESULTS: Non-normalized total airway volume and trachea length were associated (P < .01) with lung capacity measures (ie, functional residual capacity, total lung capacity, inspiratory capacity, vital capacity, residual volume, and forced expiratory vital capacity). Spearman's correlation coefficients ranged from 0.27 to 0.55 (P < .01). With the exception of trachea length, all normalized architecture-based measures (ie, total airway volume, total airway length, and total branch count) had statistically significant associations with the lung function measures (forced expiratory volume in 1 second and the ratio of forced expiratory volume in 1 second to forced expiratory vital capacity), and adjusted volume was associated with all three respiratory impedance measures (lung reactance at 5 Hz, lung resistance at 5 Hz, and lung resistance at 20 Hz), and adjusted branch count was associated with all respiratory impedance measures but lung resistance at 20 Hz. When normalized for lung volume, all airway architectural measures were statistically significantly associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease severity, with Spearman's correlation coefficients ranging from -0.338 to -0.546 (P < .01).

CONCLUSIONS: Despite the large variability in anatomic characteristics of the airway tree across subjects, architecture-based measures demonstrated statistically significant associations (P < .01) with nearly all pulmonary function testing measures, as well as with disease severity.